W.

Gewiß nur ein Fernsehfilm vom Herrn Stone - aber doch erstaunlich, wie im Land, wo political correctness erfunden wurde, so was möglich ist - und alle Akteuere beim Namen genannt werden. Bush ist ein dummer Alkoholiker, der aus falschem Ehrgeiz Präsident wird und, um seinen Vater zu übertrupfen, den Irak ein zweites Mal überfällt... Wie geht so was juristisch???
Eine solche Höhe der politischen Diskussionen im deutschen Filmgewerbe wäre wünschenswert -

- und nicht wie einige Produzenten, die mich über Bande wissen ließen, dass selbst mein harmloser Blog ihnen zu scharf gewürzt wäre... Doch das ist doch genau das Wesen der Kunst, das sie einen point of view einnimmt und durchzieht - wenn die Herrschaften das nicht mal vertragen (die an anderer Stelle gerne den Dünkel des Kulturschaffens vor sich her tragen...) dann sind es die falschen Partner zumindest für meine Projekte...

Slumdog

listen to: Soundtrack
and read:

Here is how Jamal follows his passion for his great love in Slumdog Millionaire. At the beginning of the film, Jamal is interrogated by the police. He is a contestant on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Jamal makes it to the final round of the quiz show and is in reach of the grand prize. Before the final round is played, Jamal is kidnapped, arrested and accused of cheating. Even under torture, he insists that he did not cheat.

The police chief is willing to give Jamal the benefit of the doubt if Jamal can explain how he answered the show’s questions. Jamal tells the story of his life, turning his suffering and pain into an inspiring tale of enduring love. The film flashes between the questions on the quiz show and Jamal’s childhood.

He recounts how he and his older brother, Salim (Madhur Mittal) grew up in the chaotic squalor of a Mumbai slum. They are orphaned when their mother is killed during an anti-Muslim riot and subsequent widespread arson. The boys escape the burning slum together. Despite Salim’s objections, Jamal invites the orphaned Latika to join them. It is love at first sight.

The three children scavenge in one of Mumbai’s largest dumps until they are taken to an orphanage. The orphanage is a front for a begging operation that uses horrific tactics to make the children more pitiful. Jamal is taught to sing. Salim (a young Power of Will character) is recruited to bully and capture other children.

Salim is not afraid to use violence to help him and his brother survive. He protects Jamal and stages their escape. When the boys jump on a freight train, Salim lets go of Latika’s hand and she is left behind with the gangsters. Salim is jealous of Jamal’s love for Latika.

The brothers spend years scamming and stealing from tourists. Jamal refuses to forget Latika. He obsessively searches for her. Jamal finally finds her only to lose her again. His brother rapes Latika and vanishes with the young girl. Jamal eventually finds work delivering tea in a call center. Searching the computer company’s mobile phone records he locates his missing brother. When he finds and follows Salim he also finds Latika.

Salim and Latika live in the thrall of a powerful Mumbai crime lord. Latika is one of the man’s concubines. Salim is one of his thuggish enforcers. Jamal convinces Latika to escape and meet him at the train station. Salim follows, recaptures and brutalizes her.

To escape his other larger problems, the crime lord is forced to leave Mumbai. He takes Salim and Latika with him. Jamal attempts to find and reach out to Latika by becoming a contestant on her favorite quiz show, the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

Jamal’s fate is that of a slumdog. He is poor, uneducated and one of millions just like him. Fate should dictate that he live and die in the slum, unheralded and unsung. He should accept his fate as a piece of human garbage, disposable and easily forgotten.

Instead, Jamal turns the pain, humiliation and hopelessness of his life into the answers that complete an epic quest for the love of his life. Jamal refuses to surrender to his fate or to the gangsters who control the slums. He chooses instead to seize his destiny and pursue the impossible. The police chief’s reaction is much like Anton Ego’s in Ratatouille. His preconceptions about Jamal are shattered. He rips up Jamal’s arrest warrant and returns him to the quiz show to play the prize-winning final round.

Jamal’s destiny is Latika. However unattainable their love is, Jamal chooses to race toward his passion. His choice defines who he is. Seizing his destiny ensures Jamal will live forever as a legend in slums. He never gives up. He never gives in. His unending quest finally inspires the love of his brother, who makes the ultimate sacrifice in recognition of the unquenchable intensity and purity of Jamal’s love.

Jamal and Latika find each other at the train station at the end of the film. The two have a tearful and passionate reunion.

Latika: “I thought we would meet again only in death.”
Jamal (shaking his head): “I knew you would be watching.” (Jamal turns her head to gently touch the scar disfiguring the side of her face, which is Salim’s punishment for her previous escape. She tries to turn away.)
Jamal: “This is our destiny.” (He kisses her scar tenderly) “This is our destiny.” (He kisses and holds her tight)

(summery by emotionaltoolbox.com)

m or mm

matcher or missmatcher - vereinen oder trennen -
wanna be a m in 2009.